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Graham Miles Partner

Contact Details

“Graham Miles acts for a range of regulators in the health and education sectors on matters including fitness-to-practise cases involving sexual misconduct. Clients say he is "a very experienced regulatory lawyer with great expertise."”

Chambers and Partners 2019

Graham specialises in regulatory law in our Cardiff office.

Main areas of practice

Graham has been involved in investigating and presenting professional conduct/ fitness to practise cases for more than 25 years. This experience includes cases involving nurses, midwives, pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, social workers, social care workers, solicitors and teachers. He is one of the partners currently leading the firm's team investigating cases involving nurses and midwives throughout the UK.

Both before and after the introduction of the Care Standards Act, Graham has advised on the regulatory provisions relating to nursing homes and independent hospitals. This includes advising on powers of inspection, potential prosecutions and the issuing of enforcement notices and information sharing arrangements.

In the field of social care, he investigates and presents cases involving social workers and social care workers in Wales on behalf of the Care Council for Wales. This involves regular appearances before Conduct and Competence Committees in substantive hearings. He also appears to present applications for interim orders. Graham has also assisted the Care Council in the drafting and revision of the Conduct Rules and the development of Fitness to Practise Rules which came into force in January 2014.

Significant experience

Professional Conduct

Graham and the team have, for many years, acted for the Nursing and Midwifery Council and its predecessor body, in the investigation and presentation of all cases of professional misconduct arising in Wales.

Graham has also advised Care Council for Wales, (the regulatory body for Social Care Workers) in the establishment of its Registration, Conduct and Training Rules and Codes of Conduct.

In addition he frequently advises on the increasing regulation of a wider range of health care professionals, in relation to professional misconduct, professional competence and health considerations

Graham has also represented a practitioner before the General Optical Council on conduct issued arising from the provision of domiciliary care to residents of care homes.

He has recently conducted the first 3 professional conduct cases against teachers in Wales on behalf of the General Teaching Council for Wales. He has advised various organisations on the establishment of procedures for the referral of cases to the GMC and other professional regulatory bodies

Medical Law, Public Law and Human Rights

Graham advised the HFEA in relation to Judicial Review proceedings brought by Mrs Diane Blood in the High Court and Court of Appeal.

Graham also advised the HFEA in successfully defending Judicial Review proceedings brought by a licensed fertility centre and a patient alleging interference with Articles 6, 8 and 12 of the European Convention of Human Rights in relation to the restriction on the number of embryos used in treatment services.

He advised the HFEA in relation to Judicial Review proceedings brought by a pro-life group challenging the grant of a licence permitting the testing and selection of embryos providing a tissue match with an existing child. The action was successfully defended in the Court of Appeal but is now subject to an appeal to the House of Lords.

Graham gave evidence before a Select Committee of the House of Commons on the implications of human cloning following the birth of “Dolly the Sheep”.

He has also advised on issues of confidentiality and disclosure of information arising from testing and screening for genetic and other disorders.

“He's very professional, well informed, thorough, well prepared and approachable.”

Whether or not to pay staff in relation to sleep-in shifts is not always straightforward and establishing whether someone is working or not is crucial. Rebecca Ireland and Madeleine Mould explains the law around this complex area.

The Employment Appeal Tribunal has recently considered whether previous incidents, which did not lead to disciplinary action, could be referred to in an investigation report that led to an employee's dismissal for gross misconduct.

Contact Details

Accreditations

Career

Memberships

Member of the Advisory Board to the Centre for Medico Legal
Studies at Cardiff Law School

Member of Wales Medico Legal Society

Member of Wales Public Law and Human Rights Association

Publications

Graham has had several articles published including:

“Designer Babies” (Lawtel Direct)

“Human Rights and the Regulation of Fertility Treatment” (Journal of Fertility Counselling)

Interests

Graham regularly conducts training seminars and workshops on
issues of professional conduct, medical law, including consent to treatment and
confidentiality.

Graham has been appointed by the Welsh Government to sit as
Legal Chair of Committees considering applications to provide pharmaceutical
services under the NHS (Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2005 and also to
act as an Adjudicator to determine NHS contract disputes.

Graham also sits as Legal Adviser to disciplinary committees
of the General Teaching Council for Wales, the Teaching Agency and the
Institute for Learning.

Blake Morgan LLP (registered number OC392078) is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales with its registered office at Harbour Court, Compass Road, North Harbour, Portsmouth PO6 4ST. It is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. A full list of its members is available at all of its offices. The term "partner" is used to mean a member of the firm or employee who is a lawyer with equivalent standing and qualifications.